Flipit

Flipit is a simple command line program that supports the X10
Firecracker (model CM17A) on a Unix machine.

It is known to work on Linux and OpenBSD (and so will
assuredly work on NetBSD and FreeBSD as well). I consider
portability important, so reports of successes and failures on
other operating systems is appreciated.

Flipit Documentation

What is the Firecracker?

The Firecracker/CM17a is a tiny device that plugs into one of
the serial ports on your computer. Software on your computer
sends signals to the Firecracker over the serial port. The
Firecracker/CM17a in turn turn sends radio signals to a X10
tranceiver module you have plugged into a power outlet nearby.
This tranceiver then transmits the commands to the X10 home
automation equipment you have plugged in to outlets anywhere
in your house.

In short, the Firecracker/CM17a lets you turn lamps,
appliances, and just about any other electrically powered
device on and off with your computer. It is not the only
device that lets you do this, but it is certainly the
cheapest.

The Firecracker/CM17a comes with Microsoft
Windows software. Flipit runs on Unix-like operating systems,
so you're not out of luck if you use Linux, FreeBSD, Solaris,
and the like.

Download Flipit

Other Resources

Check out X10 Ephem
for a cool program that'll let you run flipit (or any other
program) at times based off of sunrise and sunset. Great for
turning on lights as it gets dark, etc.

A nice page showing how an x10 can solve a real world problem,
instead of silly things like turning lights on and off (which
is what I use it for!): Power Cycle DSL with
x10. (also some tips on getting an x10 working with
Solaris)

A nifty looking CGI interface to several home automation
programs is BlueLava.